Targovax presents encouraging preclinical data on ONCOS-102

Wed, Jul 06, 2016 07:24 CET

Oslo 6 July 2016: The International Journal of Cancer publishes preclinical in vivo data in a mesothelioma xenograph model, demonstrating synergy of ONCOS-102 with pemetrexed and cisplatin, the current standard of care in malignant pleural mesothelioma. The article is currently available online.

"These findings give a strong rationale for the clinical testing of ONCOS-102 in combination with pemetrexed and cisplatin in patients suffering from malignant mesothelioma. In fact, we recently started a clinical trial in malignant mesothelioma where this combination will be evaluated" says Lukasz Kuryk of Targovax Research & Development.

Malignant mesothelioma is a rare cancer type, often caused by exposure to asbestos. There are no curative treatments, although surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy can sometimes help to improve patient prognosis and life expectancy. Pemetrexed and cisplatin is the standard of care chemotherapy for malignant mesothelioma, but the median PFS/OS (progression-free survival/overall survival) from the initiation of treatment is only approximately 12 months.

In the present preclinical study, an evaluation was made of the antitumor activity of combination treatment with chemotherapy (pemetrexed, cisplatin, carboplatin) and ONCOS-102 in a xenograft BALB/c model of human malignant mesothelioma. The study demonstrated that ONCOS-102 is able to induce immunogenic cell death of human mesothelioma cell lines in vitro and showed anti-tumor activity in the treatment of the in vivo xenograft model. While chemotherapy alone showed no anti-tumor activity in the xenograph model, ONCOS-102 slowed down the tumor growth. When both ONCOS-102 and chemotherapy were combined, a synergistic anti-tumor effect was observed.

Targovax is currently studying ONCOS-102 in combination with pemetrexed and cisplatin in a randomized Phase Ib/II clinical trial of up to 30 patients with malignant pleural mesothelioma. The trial has a phase Ib safety lead-in cohort of 6 patients. The trial dosed its first patient in June 2016. During 2016, Targovax will also initiate three other clinical trials in various solid tumor indications to study ONCOS-102 in combination with other treatments such as immune checkpoint inhibitors and DC therapy.

Arming the patient's immune system to fight cancer Targovax is a clinical stage immuno-oncology company developing targeted immunotherapy treatments for cancer patients. Targovax has a broad and diversified immune therapy portfolio and aims to become a world leader in its area. The company is currently developing two complementary and highly targeted approaches in immuno-oncology.

ONCOS - 102 is a virus-based immunotherapy platform based on engineered oncolytic viruses armed with potent immune-stimulating transgenes targeting solid tumors. This treatment is designed to reactivate the immune system's capacity to recognize and attack cancer cells.

TG01 and TG02 are part of a peptide-based immunotherapy platform targeting the difficult to treat RAS mutations found in more than 85% of pancreatic cancers, 50% of colorectal cancer and 20-30% of all cancers. Targovax is working towards demonstrating that TG vaccines will prolong time to cancer progression and increase survival.

These product candidates will be developed in combination with multiple treatments, including checkpoint inhibitors in several cancer indications. Targovax also has a number of other cancer immune therapy candidates in the early stages of development.